Ikebukuro's Deathscythe
by ClusterChu
Summary: 'Shiori' is a mystery. No one knows exactly who it is. Or where it is from. Or even if it is really human. When it crosses paths with Izaya and Aoba, two very similar people, they both try to find out it's identity without getting in the way of its goal...whatever it is. Izaya/OC, possible Shizuo/OC
1. Prelude: Double Edged Scythe

Prelude: Double-Edged Scythe 

Orihara Izaya was becoming slightly amused.

Everything was falling perfectly in place. Of course it would; he played on both sides to ensure victory, even if there was a twist to the tale. He caused a commotion a few months back amongst the Dollars, the Slasher and the Yellow Scarves. There were other things too, like the Black Rider's head being in his possession.

Not to mention, he had a new piece to add to his twisted game of chess.

It was a person a little younger than him. Around their late teens. He didn't have the slightest clue if it was a girl or boy though. During their first meeting, it would often switch voices, even imitating him once (he had to admit, it was a pretty solid imitation).

The same went for its name and its facial appearance. The person refused to tell their name, only hinting that it started with 'K' and its surname was 'Shiori'. The person wore a hoodie that was obviously too large for them at the time. The hood covered most of its forehead, only allowing them to see its light brown eyes.

* * *

"Namie, don't you just love what I'm doing with the city?", he asked his secretary.

She stared at him bitterly before responding in an icy voice, "No."

"Shall I help you get Seiji-kun closer to you so you can appreciate the city?", he added, but she shook her head.

"As long as he's on the same planet as me, I'm satisfied.", she responded.

"What a boring person you are.", Izaya stated.

It was late evening in Shinjuku. He was at his computer, typing away. When he started talking to Namie though, he spun around in his chair. She, as usual, was cooking dinner. She had a thought about poisoning him, but she pushed it to the back of her mind.

He chuckled slightly as he pulled himself to his board game. He added a piece to the board and placed it to the far left. He moved around some pieces, most of them going to the right, clustering them together. "It'll be a while before something happens. Maybe I can get Shiori-kun to speed things up..."

* * *

Kuronuma Aoba was having problems of his own.

The person he knew, but not well enough, was giving him trouble. He had already suspected Izaya had something to do with it, but it wasn't acting out of character. Nor could it be so easily manipulated. In any case, he was having trouble using the person. It was like a double-edged scythe.

Not the it used a scythe in the first place. But it was just as sharp as one.

As he did his homework, he tried thinking of a way to get on its good side like before. He wrote with such pressure that his pencil broke in half. "Tsk. It's giving me trouble...", he mumbled.

A knock was heard from his window. When he turned around, he saw Shiori holding onto the side of his apartment. He carefully opened the window and Shiori tumbled inside. It stood up and pretended to clean the dust off its clothes.

"Kukuku...well, if it isn't Aoba. You've matured a little.", it said, messing up his hair. "Hopefully, the same could be said about your height one day. You're still as short as an elementary student."

He moved its hand away and fixed his hair. "What do you want?"

Its light brown eyes flickered as it slowly said, "Why don't we discuss it over some tea? I'm pretty hungry after climbing so much just to meet my new enemy."

* * *

**A/N: Starting my first fiction on FanFiction! Yay!**

**As you probably don't know, this story takes place during the light novels (starting volume 4) because one, I love the translated novels so far and two, there are so many Izaya/OC stories that take place during the anime, so why not a story that takes place during the novels?  
**

**So far, only volumes 4-6, 9 and snippets of 7-8 are translated by anni_fiesta on livejournal. There's also a Chinese translation of volume 10 floating around (though I can't read Chinese). Yeah, take some time to read the novels as well! (Derp, I'll stop advertising now).  
**

**...Review/follow/favorite? I'll give you virtual cookies o-o?  
**


	2. One: Friends (Or Enemies?)

Chapter One: Friends...(Or Enemies)

Aoba brought some tea and cakes with him upstairs to his bedroom. He still couldn't understand why it came all of a sudden. Last time he checked, it wanted him dead. Yes, he was supposed to be next on the list, but Shiori held back and went after other things.

...Like the color gangs.

"Ah! Aoba don't peek!", it said, imitating Izaya's voice. "I'm changing! You'll have to wait outside."

It only took about a minute before Shiori let him in. It changed into a regular red shirt and light navy jeans. It was also one of those few occasions that Shiori took off it's hoodie. But it only did it in front of Aoba and only when it was being dead serious.

"Thank you.", it said and gestured him to sit on the side of the bed with him. "Hn. You're a good liar, you know that?"

"Eh? What are you talking about?", he seemed confused, but relaxed as he replied.

"I don't like fine details, so I won't go into detail, but...", it paused for a second. Its eyes flickered under the little light that came from the high schooler's window. "You lied to me."

Aoba chuckled dryly as he asked, "It took you this long, Shiori-san? To figure it out?"

"I'm not as deceptive as you~!", it whined, switching to Izaya's voice.

The comment made Aoba cheer up considerably. A faint smile showed up on Shiori's face. It kind of reminded it of when they were friends...

"Ah, but anyways.", it said, switching to its emotionless voice. "If I had known it was you before, I would've destroyed you before it escalated, but...", it stopped suddenly and started eating one of the small cakes.

"But you couldn't figure it out and instead, attacked both gangs, which made it even worse...", he finished off what it was saying. He too, took a cake and ate it.

"You really are just like Iza-kun.", it replied.

Aoba's face turned sour as he shook his head. "Don't compare me to that bastard."

* * *

They sat in silence as they ate their cakes together. Once in a while, they would glance at each other, but Shiori would quickly turn its head away angrily. Aoba smirked like he expected it to happen and continue eating. Sooner or later, it was all done. He took the tray and stepped out of his room.

The phone buzzed in Shiori's jean pocket. It took out the cellphone and answered it. "Iza-kun? What do you want?"

"You sound kind of pissed off. Did you find out something about the color gangs?", he asked.

Shiori's eyes darted around the room in confusion. "...Uh, not really."

"Really? Because you're answering from Kuronuma Aoba's house."

"...", it was kind of confused as to how he knew. Until it made a hypothesis. "You're tracking my phone again?"

"You're good at this.", he said slyly. There was a slight chuckle coming from the other end of the phone. "Come to my apartment. I have some information for you..."

It raised an eyebrow and nodded, forgetting that it was on the phone. But it couldn't just leave without saying a word; that would make him suspicious. It hung up on Izaya and changed back into its hoodie. Shiori glanced at his homework and the spare pencil beside it.

...It had an idea.

* * *

It took a while, but it made it to Izaya's apartment in Shinjuku. When it knocked on the door, Yagiri Namie answered and told it to come inside. Shiori stepped carefully like it was sneaking around. It jumped onto a seat in the couch, holding onto its hood.

Izaya felt a peculiar presence in the room. But he didn't actually see who came in; he was too busy having fun in his chatroom. After a while of deafening silence, except for the sound of typing, he asked, "What's your business here~?"

"To beat the crap out of you.", it said, imitating Masaomi's voice.

"Ouch. That really hurts Masaomi-kun...", he said, pretending to be hurt. He smirked almost right after and continued. "...Or should I say, Shiori-san?"

Its face expression never changed. Izaya pretended to pout, saying, "You're no fun. Don't tell me you're as boring as Namie~!"

Shiori shook its head and got straight to the point. "Tell me what you need to tell me."

"Alright, alright.", he put up his hands defensively. "You know the Black Rider, right? Well, Yadogiri Shinning Corporation put up a wanted poster for ten million yen if you find out its identity."

"So what? You want me to do your dirty work?", Shiori tilted its head up, just enough for Izaya to see how annoyed the mysterious person looked. They both smirked at around the same time, with Shiori commenting, "Kukuku...I would've sold you to the police but I'm stuck in the same position as your 'secretary'."

"Ah, don't worry. You're not doing my dirty work here.", Izaya brushed off the previous comment and the intense glare like it was nothing. "I just thought you would be interested, knowing you..."

"How ironic, since you **don't** know me.", it said, shaking its head.

Izaya chuckled at the comment. He was quickly becoming amused by Shiori's witty comments. "Not knowing seems so much more fun than if I knew you personally. I was thinking that maybe you were someone I know in disguise..."

"Whatever. I'm going now.", Shiori cut him off completely, obviously done putting up with his crap. It smirked before waving to Izaya. "I might take up on your offer."

* * *

**A/N: Thanks to all those who followed/favourited the story! *hands out virtual cookies***

**It'd be nice if I got a review as well...please? (Of course, no flaming please). **

**The chapters will be short for a while, until the story starts to stray away a little from the storyline (because a retell of the light novel would be boring, especially if you've read it).  
**


	3. Two: The Real City of Ikebukuro I

Chapter 2: The Real City of Ikebukuro, Part One

_'Should I really take up on his offer?', _it asked itself, now a little paranoid. _'He's obviously leading me into a trap...surely he is, why would he tell me about the ten million yen reward for that dullahan? Kukuku...well two can play at that game, Iza-kun! I'll fall for your little trap...' _

Shiori walked along the sidewalk, with its beloved cellphone in hand. A simple cellphone with a rainbow design in front and a six-star key chain hanging from the top of it. Shiori suddenly stopped and sidestepped out of the crowd. It texted something to someone else. It waited for a few moments, looking around at nothing in particular. It started texting again, this time in a more aggressive manner.

Momentarily, it turned off its phone and started walking again. But it stopped again, this time walking towards the curb. Something neighed and whirled by Shiori, prompting it to smirk. "Kuku, looks like I found the Black Rider. Maybe this won't be so hard after all!"

It started to run through the crowd. It ran a bit faster, but the Black Rider was much too fast. Suddenly, Shiori jumped onto a moving car, grabbing the attention of others on the streets. People snapped photos of it as Shiori jumped from one car to another to another.

Jumping onto the vehicle closest to the Black Rider, Shiori attempted to jump on the motorcycle. The Black Rider turned to find Shiori squatting at the front of the car roof. It overtook another car and sped down the road. Shiori frowned and started jumping onto more cars to catch up.

"For a monster, it sure is smart.", it said, imitating an unfamiliar person. "Annoying, how annoying."

Just as it was about to hop on the last car, it heard sirens from some distance. _'Damn.', _it jumped off the car and continued walking casually as if nothing happened. People continued to take pictures of it while it walked back home. _'I'm probably going to make an appearance on TV tomorrow.'__  
_

* * *

Next Day...

Today was the opening ceremony for Raira Academy. It skipped its own school to go to the opening ceremony, knowing that Aoba would be attending Raira Academy from now on. Its cellphone was in hand, texting to another person, different from the one yesterday. Once the ceremony was over, it turned off its phone and headed to Aoba.

Aoba was talking to two other people, a boy and a girl. Maybe playing around with Aoba would clear its mind from what Izaya asked it to do yesterday. "Hiya Aoba! So nice to see you maturing~!", it said, now imitating Aoba's mother.

"Huh? Is that your mother?", the boy asked, looking around, only to see a hooded person walking to them.

"Haha, no, I'm just messing with you.", Shiori replied, holding its hoodie down. "I'm just an old friend of Aoba."

Suddenly, the boy remembered something and said, "I saw you! People were posting images of you all over the internet yesterday! That's amazing, how you were jumping from car to car like that. Are you a track star?"

"Certainly. Though I'm mostly skilled in High Jump and 800m.", Shiori said, smirking in Aoba's direction. "Yeah, I was just trying to get to my house quicker. Something urgent came up yesterday.", it turned back to Aoba and said, "So, are you going to introduce your friends?"

Aoba grumbled quietly at Shiori's sudden appearance but said, "He's Ryuugamine Mikado and she's Sonohara Anri."

"Mikado and Anri? Nice to meet you, my name is Shiori, but feel free to call me any pet names.", it said and bowed. "Mind if I call you Ryuuga-kun and An-chan? I'm very fond of shortening names, even if we just met."

"Well...I g-guess it's okay, Shiori-san.", Anri shrugged and turned away.

"Great!", it said and clasped its hands together. "I was just here to ask if you guys have any information on the Black Rider, Saika, or a company called 'Nebula'."

Immediately, the two of them tensed up. Though, Mikado didn't tense as much as Anri, who never saw it coming. Moments of silence amongst the groups passed and Shiori waved and said, "I guess you kids wouldn't know. I just thought that if Aoba knew, you two knew as well."

Aoba shot it a death glare. Shiori just tilted its head back and grinned at the younger boy. It turned back to face the other two, who were still a bit nervous. "Sorry to bother you. But it was nice meeting you!", it started to skip away when it turned back around and said, "Aoba, I'm coming to your house after school!"

He gritted his teeth, but nodded. After Shiori was out of earshot, he turned back to Mikado and Anri. Mikado was staring at him in confusion and Anri turned away uncomfortably. After what seemed like hours, Aoba finally said, "Shiori was joking! You guys really need to chill out!"

After that, he came to the conclusion that he really needs to get rid of it.

* * *

After school...

Shiori crept to his room after school. Knowing that he was probably in his room, it decided to play a trick on it. "Aoba! Come downstairs for a minute.", it said, imitating Aoba's mother's voice. It only took a moment before Aoba ran out of his room and happened to bump into Shiori. It didn't take him very long to realize it was just an imitation.

"Why are you really here?", Aoba asked, now holding onto the neck of its hoodie. "Obviously, you're not concerned about the color gangs, yet you're following me around!"

"Don't dabble in other's affairs.", it said, grabbing the neck of his shirt as well. Aoba couldn't tell whether it was angry or not. He couldn't even tell much of what circulated through its mind. "Especially mine. I'm very protective of my territory."

It lets go of Aoba's shirt and Aoba does the same, only pushing it away once he does. "Get out."

"Protective of your territory too, eh?", Shiori chuckled, only fusing his anger even more. "I don't know why you're so angry, but I'll get out..."

It entered his bedroom and climbed out the window without a goodbye.

* * *

The day quickly turned to night as Shiori casually walked home. The color gangs, Izaya, the Black Rider, Saika, 'Nebula'; so many things to think about. The color gangs were just one of the many reasons why it appeared in Ikebukuro, but no one knew. _'And that's the way it should stay...' __  
_

It tripped and bumped into something...or someone. The person turned and locked eyes with Shiori. Blonde hair...bartender suit...sunglasses...pissed look. _'Oh, it's him.'__  
_

"Hi Shizu-kun! Guess who's back?", Shiori said with a grin.

There was also another man with dreadlocks with Shizuo. He looked up at the taller man and asked, "Do you know him...her..."

"Depending on what you choose, I can be a male or a female.", Shiori explained, although the man was still confused. "Though, most people just prefer to call me an 'it'."

Completely ignoring Shiori's comment, Shizuo stepped towards it and replied to the man, "Yeah, I know who Shiori is. Bastard used to hang around that flea when we were in high school. It always used to help Izaya screw around with my life!"

"And how many times have I told you that I despise Izaya as much as you do?", it frowned and stepped away from him. Once again, it smirked happily as the wind blew its hoodie off, revealing its short, brown hair. "But then again, how many times did I tell Izaya that I despise you as much as him?"

Seeing how Shizuo was about to lose his temper, the man grabbed him by the arm. "Shizuo, don't. This is pointless."

Shiori narrowed its eyes into tiny slits. "Don't listen to him, Shizuo. You've been waiting for this opportunity."

"Yeah, I know.", Shizuo said, grinning from ear to ear. "But I won't fight you."

Shiori blinked in confusion and said, "Really? I don't have to fight you to have you do me a favor?"

"Favor?"

"Yup! I want you to help me find someone..."

* * *

**A/N: Happy Holidays!**

**Since I'm on Winter Break, thought I would post another chapter. I could've posted it a few days ago, but my internet was being stupid...  
**

**Thanks to everyone who read/alert/favorited/reviewed~ Come get your virtual cookies~ *leaves a plate of virtual cookies on a table*  
**


	4. Three: The Real City of Ikebukuro II

Chapter 3: The Real City of Ikebukuro, Part Two

"Take me to the Black Rider."

"What?"

Shiori held out its hands to the blond-haired man. He looked down at the petite person and muttered something to himself. Shiori's face hardened as it lowered its hands, then held them out again with more aggression. "If you take me to the Black Rider, I'll give you anything in return."

"How about an explanation in return? Why the hell do you want me to take you to the Black Rider?", he asked, lighting a cigarette.

It giggled at his response. "My explanation? I want answers. You see, I lost something precious to my family and I traced it back here."

"So you think the Black Rider has it?", Shizuo asked.

"Nah. I think the Black Rider knows something.", Shiori replied. "Just like the many people connected to Izaya. I bet even you know something. After all, you're connected to Izaya, in a way."

The man with the dreadlocks put a hand on Shizuo's shoulder and whispered, "Are you sure you're going to trust it?"

Shizuo nodded and walked towards Shiori. It put back on its hoodie and stepped beside Shizuo. The blond-haired man fixed his sunglasses and stated, "Listen. If walk around the city, we'll hopefully find the Black Rider...", he paused and grumbled, "...or that annoying underground doctor, Shinra."

"If we fail to find the Black Rider, will this 'Shinra' help me?", it asked.

"If you can get him to not ramble, then yeah.", he replied back and walked ahead.

* * *

They went in circles around Ikebukuro, trying to see if they can find the Black Rider. It didn't take long for Shizuo to get frustrated and for Shiori to become bored. It looked around; Shizuo was in front and there was no one else around. It flipped open its cell phone and text to someone.

"I don't think she's out tonight...", Shizuo grumbled and lit out his cigarette.

"Oh? The Black Rider is a she?", it asked.

"Yeah.."

"Okay.", it shrugged and its attention shifted to the phone that constantly beeped. "So, where do we go next?"

"To Shinra, I guess.", he lit up another cigarette as they two of them headed to the underground doctor's house*.

* * *

"Shizuo! I haven't seen you in a long time! How have you been doing?", Shinra started rambling on without much regard to Shizuo. The underground doctor suddenly noticed the shorter person and pointed, "Who's that person there? I recognize him...uh, her...uh..."

"You don't remember Shiori?", Shizuo grumbled.

"Oh! That he-she troublemaker!", Shinra shouted happily, which made Shizuo have a slight urge to ram Shinra's head into a wall. The doctor grabbed Shiori's hand and shook it so much, it felt as though he broke it off. "It's been a long time, Shiori!"

"Oh, Kishitani-san is Shinra. I always forget his personal name...", it said, shaking his hand.

"Shiori wanted to see the Black Rider for a moment.", Shizuo explained.

"Really? Okay, I'll get Celty to come meet you!", Shinra said as he ran to the next room. From there, he called out, "You should come here more often! I can do a check to see which gender you are."

Shiori shuddered at the thought of someone touching it. In no way did it like its personal space bubble to be broken, especially by some creepy underground doctor. _No thank you, _it thought.

Shinra came back with Celty, who quickly put on her helmet before anyone noticed. She held her only method of communication in hand and started typing on it as soon as Shinra showed her the person with the hoodie. The dullahan pushed the PDA in Shiori's face.

[Hi! My name's Celty. Uh...Shinra said you wanted to talk to me?]

Shiori nodded with too much enthusiasm. It cleared its throat and said, "Yes, I wanted to talk to you. Actually, I wanted to talk to Kishitani-san as well."

Celty stared at Shiori before typing away on her PDA. Shinra left and came back with a coffee cup that had his name and chibi face on it. [What did you want to talk to us about?]

"I just came to Ikebukuro to see if you have any information on Nebula or Saika. You see, I lost something very important to our family and of course, I want it back."

Shinra tapped his chin and remembered something. Just as he was about to say it, Celty covered his mouth with her shadow-like substance. And just as Shiori was about to comment, the dullahan showed it what she typed.

[Shinra's father used the Saika 20 years ago to separate the soul that connects my head to my body.]

It's brown eyes widened in surprise. To think, it was used that long ago, just after Shiori was born. It still didn't help it much though, except that Shinra's father has it and it was used twenty years ago. All it had to do now was to ask about Shinra's father...whoever he was. "I see...now then..."

The cell phone buzzed, then rang. It looked at number and scowled in disgust. Remembering that others were around, it sucked in its lips and tried to hide its annoyed look. "Ah, excuse me for a second..."

* * *

"Kukuku...why'd you call me, Izaya?", it asked with a wide, but trembling grin.

"I have something to tell you. Come to Shinjuku for a moment, will you?", he said, chuckling. Shiori sighed and wondered if something happened; that would be the only reason why Izaya would start giggling on the phone. "It would be better if we had a chat face-to-face."

"Fine...I was done with my business, anyways.", it lied and hung up on him. It sighed and went back inside to explain. Shiori wondered what was so important that Izaya wants to talk to it face-to-face and not over the phone. Shiori regretted not pushing him more to spit out the truth.

Once it poked its head back inside the place, Shizuo was about to open his mouth. Shiori cut in and said, "Sorry guys, I have to go. It's an emergency...do you think I can come back here sometime this week, Celty-san?"

[Of course you can. I just have to make sure that I'm available when you're coming.]

"I'll keep in touch with Kishitani-san and Shizuo to make sure.", it said. With a little wave, it set off to Shinjuku, where it will await what Izaya has to say.

Shizuo looked towards the surprised couple, Celty and Shinra, and waved them off. "I'll be going. I just came to escort Shiori here. See ya."

* * *

Meanwhile...

"Hmmm...what was that?" "I know, this place is mysterious!" "Home to the strongest man? Who would've thought..." "Stop worrying! Those color gangs won't stop me! I just wanna explore this place for awhile. It's awfully lonely at home without Shiori." "Yeah, I know I'll be in trouble..."

A girl, around the same age as Shiori, talked to herself as she walked away from Shinjuku. Or so it seemed she was talking to herself. She had a distinctive, childish look on her face that told others she wasn't from Ikebukuro. The young girl dressed childishly as well, with bright colors and little frills on her shirt.

She headed somewhere, carrying a bag of Russian sushi with her that she got not too long ago. Once in a while, the girl would stop and take pictures with her phone. The young girl loved the scenery Ikebukuro had to offer. She found it more appealing than in her small hometown.

She stopped and her eyes drifted to across the street, where Shizuo was walking with his hands in his pockets. "Is that him? Is he the strongest man in Ikebukuro? Heiwajima Shizuo?" "I better go meet him!"

* * *

"What do you mean 'someone you know is here'?", Shiori tapped its foot impatiently. Izaya smiled with a bit of amusement as Shiori grumbled a string of swears. "Are you talking about..."

"Your little sister Inouye? No one else from your family would come here, except the mysterious Inouye Shiori.", the information broker chuckled. He spun around in his chair, excited at the fact that both Shiori siblings are in Ikebukuro. Though, he was still more interested in Shiori.

Shiori sighed. "Why'd she come? I told her to stay at home..."

He stopped spinning in his chair and faced Shiori. "You'll tell her to go home?"

"...Nah. Let her have her fun.", it said lowering its hood more. "It's not often that she gets to go outside of her hometown."

* * *

"Hello there! Hello there mister!", she called to man in the bartender suit. Before Shizuo could react fast enough, she ran across the street and hurled herself towards him. Inouye landed head first into his chest.

It didn't do anything except made him annoyed. Heck, he didn't know who she was! Shizuo started to have a hunch that Izaya was behind this somehow. "What do you want?"

"Do I have to want something to become your friend?", she asked, holding onto his waist.

"I don't even know who you are and you want us to be friends?", he raised an eyebrow at the apparent crazy girl.

"But I know who you are, Heiwajima Shizuo. My friend got information from the people here. They say you're the strongest man in Ikebukuro. But I wanted to see for myself, so I came here. I also though it would be a nice vacation."

"...Go home. A little girl like you shouldn't be here at this time of night.", he said, loosening her grip on him.

Inouye laughed nervously. "Little girl? I'm 20 years old, silly!"

_"20!? She barely looks like an adult!"_, he thought, looking at the girl who now held onto his shirt sleeve. He wiggled his arm to try and loosen the grip. She let go suddenly, but continued to block his way.

"I said to go home."

"But I don't wanna! Hmph, I came here to see if you're really the strongest man in Ikebukuro, but it sounds like you're scared or something! Just because I'm a girl, it doesn't mean anything!", she crossed her arms and stuck out her tongue, which angered Shizuo.

"Was that a challenge? I don't usually beat up little girls."

Her light brown hair that was two pigtails swayed with the wind as she turned her head away from him. She stuck out her tongue again and said, "Orihara Izaya sent me to annoy you. What are you gonna do about that?"

_ "Dammit! I knew Izaya had something to do with this!",_ he gritted his teeth and clenched his fist. Even when Izaya wasn't in Ikebukuro, he still found ways to screw with Shizuo's life. He watched as the girl stuck her middle finger high in the air and ran off.

That was the last straw. He decided to run after her, see where she will go.

* * *

**A/N: The chapters are getting longer...the story is unfolding...**

**I don't really have anything to say, except I'm going to *try* and update monthly. Maybe two chapters in a month if I'm quick enough. **


	5. Four: The Real City of Ikebukuro III

Chapter 4: The Real City of Ikebukuro, Part Three

Shizuo grew tired of the game that girl was playing. She had him running around for half an hour, then just disappeared. He wondered about the last five minutes, when he was just about to catch her, he saw something that he got rid of a while back.

* * *

_"Ha ha! You're so slow, Heiwajima Shizuo!", she giggled happily as she ran away from him. But when she turned around again, he had caught up to her and was just arm's length away. Inouye turned the corner and when Shizuo tried to follow, a group of thugs were in his way.  
_

_"Dammit! Out of the way!", he roared and punched one of the guys away, crashing him into a building nearby. They became a bit nervous, but didn't back down. At the time, Shizuo didn't really care if they back down or not. Though, even in his partial rage, he wondered if these were just regular thugs or were they a color gang. They didn't even look as though they were from Ikebukuro.  
_

_As he kept swatting them away, they stood back up once again. In his rage, he didn't actually think about why they stood up so quickly after receiving a point-blank blow. But he did notice that their eyes flickered red once in a while. It didn't bother him though, until their eyes turned completely red and they summoned swords.  
_

_He recognized this; this was the work of the Slasher. 'The hell? I thought it was gone for good after I beat all of them up a while back...' _

_They all jumped at him at once. He quickly pulled up a nearby lamp post and used it to hurl them into the sky. They rained back down on him, but they got up as if nothing happened. Shizuo decided to just punch them as far as he can. He punched one of thugs into another one, creating a domino effect. He ran past them and quickly lost them._

* * *

Shizuo sighed and wondered what happened to the girl. _'I just hope she didn't get caught by the Slasher.'_

He decided to head home, seeing as it's late. As he walked home, he felt a familiar, yet unfamiliar presence stalking him. Shizuo kept a close eye until the presence eventually disappeared when he got to his apartment.

* * *

Shiori turned to Izaya, who grinned back at it. He was actually quite surprised. Knowing Shiori, it would rush into a situation immediately, especially if it had to do with Inouye. But this time, Shiori didn't even lift a finger to help her. Izaya was a bit amused; what could it have up its sleeve?

"Hmm...so what are you up to?", Shiori asked, opening an eye to the info broker.

"Chatroom...you should try it one day.", Izaya suggested.

"And I assume that the chatroom is how you circulate your information?"

"You're clever. Part of it is the chatroom."

Shiori shrugged in a very exaggerated fashion. "How you're a successful information broker is beyond me. You stand out from miles away. If one of your former clients wanted to, they can sell you out to the police and they would find you quick."

Izaya spun in his chair, smirking happily. "That sounds like something you would do."

"Please~ why would I do that to you?", Shiori said. "Kukuku...you're the source of all my latest information. I won't sell you to the police...just yet."

"It's nice to see we both have something in mind.", he said and started typing away at his computer.

Shiori raised an eyebrow, but didn't question his comment. It would probably find out, eventually...when it was too late. That's what the brunette hated about Izaya; his comments don't make sense until the last moment. Though, it did make Shiori's life more interesting.

"I'm going home and I bet she'll be home as well.", Shiori said, its eyes fixed towards the window.

Izaya's eyes continued to be fixed to his computer screen. "You have a hunch that she knows where you live?"

Shiori narrowed its eyes and slightly glared at Izaya. "Yeah...whatever, see you."

As Shiori left through the window, Izaya smirked happily.

* * *

"That was fun, wasn't it?" "Huh? Yeah, this is where he lives." "Eh!? I can't just go in like that! First, I need to gain his trust." "Ohohoho! Want to dive straight into the action, huh?", Inouye was talking to what she called her 'imaginary friend', but it was more complicated than that.

She turned around and walked back to her home, remembering the meeting she had with the information broker, Orihara Izaya.

* * *

_"Hello. You must be Inouye Shiori. Why don't you take a seat? Namie will get you some tea.", Izaya said, gesturing her to the couch. He sat down opposite to her, also asking for a cup of tea. Yagiri Namie, the secretary, scowled and marched to the kitchen.__ "So Ikebukuro is probably interesting to you, isn't it?"  
_

_"Yeah! That's why I came. And also, me and my imaginary friend have a mission!", she said happily. _

_Izaya widened his eyes, as if he was really surprised. "An imaginary friend, huh? Usually, you would have an imaginary friend when you're a little kid, but discard them as soon as you reach around ten. Yet you kept your imaginary friend all these years."_

_"Well, my imaginary friend is kinda real. Just not visibly there.", Izaya took notice that she was unusually bubbly and childish, something an adult would outgrow. Maybe it was because she's a young adult? "Anyways, I want information on where Shiori lives, Shizuo Heiwajima, Blue Squares and Yellow Scarves. I'm ready to pay you a large sum of money." _

_"Really? It's a deal then.", Izaya said. "Oh, our tea is done."_

* * *

_'That guy was so reluctant, but Shiori called him an annoying nuisance...', _Inouye thought for a moment before forgetting it all and skipping happily through the streets. She noticed a lot of bikers that she recognized from Saitama. She wondered what they were doing here, then wondered if this was the reason why Shiori came here as well.

"Ah, don't worry about me, I'm just fine!", she said to her imaginary friend. Though, the increase in the number of bikers was a bit nerve-racking. _'Hey! Maybe he's also around here as well!' _

She started skipping to her house happily once again.

* * *

Shiori took off its sweater and threw it at the rack. It then took out a book and lied down at the couch. Shiori noticed Inouye's laptop at the table, untouched for a while. It sighed and said aloud, "Looks like she already established herself here."

It tossed and turned to try to adjust itself in a nice reading position. While turning around, Shiori noticed its cellphone, lying beside the lamp in the living room. Suddenly a light bulb lit up in its head and Shiori reached for the cellphone.

"Kukuku...I haven't talked to Aoba for a while. Let's see if he's home..."

* * *

**A/N: This chapter...is shorter...**

**Because a lot of the action is in the next chapter...and because I'm procrastinating. I promised I would give you a chapter each month, and two if I'm quick enough. I'm trying as hard as I can to keep the promise! ^^**

**Thanks to everyone who has read/followed/favorited/reviewed so far! It does give me a lot of motivation to see that someone is taking the time to read my story! I really don't know how the review system is like now (I heard that you have to review in order to follow or fave, I don't know if that's true), but continue to read/follow/fave/review~  
**

**Wow. Lengthy author's note is lengthy. **


	6. Five: Untrustworthy Mission

Chapter Five: An Untrustworthy Mission

Aoba was about to go to sleep when he heard the phone beside his bed ring. He was reluctant to pick up, but his body forced him to anyways. Once Aoba picked up, he heard an emotionless, teasing voice coming from the other end. "Kukuku, I knew you would pick up! Let's chit-chat for a while, just like good ol' times, hm?"

It was Shiori alright, trying to call him at a time like this. He was about to hang up without saying a word, but realized that it would be pointless. So he stayed on the line and asked, "You want something from me, don't you?"

"...Gee, after I helped destroy your gang, all of sudden you're so cold to me. Is it really that important?"

"Maybe to you, it isn't. Besides, you're response doesn't relate to my question.", Aoba smiled over the phone when he heard no further response. "What's wrong? Have nothing to say to that... Shiori-sempai?"

He still didn't hear a response from the other end. Aoba grinned from ear to ear, happy that he beat Shiori's little game, whatever it was playing at. His smile faded when he heard a faint chuckle, almost resembling his own. The voice that came on the phone was his own. "I actually do have something to say to that. I was just thinking about how to say it without hurting your feelings, until I realize there is no way of saying it nicely."

It continued. "You're obsessed with your gang...too obsessed. Whatever the hell you're trying to do, it won't work because your gang will fall and you'll fall with it too."

He clenched his jaw and gripped the phone tighter. "Oh? And who will make it fall?"

"I will.", it said, huffing over the phone and switched back to its emotionless voice. "It looks like we can't go back to old days. Goodbye."

And with that, he heard the phone go silent. Aoba smashed the phone down on his desk; he wondered what Shiori actually wanted from him. It surely sounded like it just wanted to have a chat, but about what? The young Blue Squares leader leaned back in his computer chair and thought of the memories he shared with Shiori, a family friend at the time. He reminisced about the past and realized that most of time, it would be lying, trying to hide something. Something clicked in Aoba's head as he thought:

_'If Shiori doesn't want me to dabble in its affairs, then I'll just have to do the opposite. It's the only way to get to the bottom of this and possibly save my gang. I don't want to have to rebuild it again from scratch.' _

* * *

The Next Day...

Shiori woke up to the sound of its phone ringing beside it, but it wasn't Shiori's. It turned around, only to find Inouye lying down, her back facing her sibling. Inouye fiddled with her phone for a moment before turning it off and tucking it away. She flipped around, facing her sibling.

Shiori sighed and said, "Didn't I tell you not to follow me?"

"Hmm...I didn't follow you! I came a few days after you!", she beamed.

"That's still called following.", Shiori said and sat up on the bed. It's feet dangled at the bedside. "It's pitiful that we have to share a bed. If I knew you were coming, I would've rented an apartment with two bedrooms."

Inouye also followed suite. "That's okay. It doesn't matter."

"Right. I'm gonna get ready and go.", it said, climbing out of bed. It stretched as it explained, "I'm going to find the Black Rider...just don't cause trouble."

It opened the door and walked away before its sister could respond. Inouye sat there, wondering what it was going to the Black Rider for. She huffed, reminding her of the old days when she and her sibling would just spend time together. Now, Shiori was so busy that they barely had a minute to spare.

_'Oh well...my imaginary friend is here to keep me company!' _

She, too, got out of bed and went to cook breakfast for herself.

* * *

Shiori was out of the door by 9 and into the streets of Ikebukuro. It tried to recall where the underground doctor was located from last night, but wasn't able to remember properly. Shiori knocked its head and walked around, seeing if it could jog its memory.

It saw Aoba, Mikado and Anri walking to school together. Seeing as the conversation between the Blue Squares leader and Shiori yesterday turned sour, it didn't bother teasing him today. They walked pass each other, not even looking at each other. When Shiori passed, Aoba sneaked a glance at it and continued walking like nothing happened.

Shiori walked past Shizuo and Tom, who were conversing about something. Though, Shizuo saw it and casted a suspicious glance. He wasn't exactly sure what it was up to, but he had a feeling it was snooping around, just like old times. Tom snapped him out of his thoughts with a pat on the shoulder as they walked to where they're supposed to go.

It shrugged and suddenly saw Celty on her bike. As she zoomed past the bend, Shiori waved to her. It seemed to catch her attention as she made a U-turn back to Shiori and stopped in front of it. Celty took out her PDA and started typing something. [Hey Shiori. Anything you need?]

"I just wanted to find out more about Shinra's father.", it shrugged, looking at no one in particular.

[I don't know much about him. You would have to ask Shinra yourself.] she typed on her PDA.

Shiori nodded and asked, "Where was your house again?"

Celty pointed to the far right, the only place where it hadn't remotely checked. Shiori ran its fingers atop its hood and sighed. Celty started typing on her PDA again, catching the slight attention of the brunette. She held the PDA close to Shiori's eyes as it read what was on it. After a few seconds, Shiori narrowed its eyes at the Black Rider.

[What exactly are you looking for?]

It started to chuckle as it took out its phone. "Kukuku...so you want to find out about the grand scheme? I'll tell you in due time. You'll just have to wait for the show...it is scheduled to start in a week or so?"

[You are just like Izaya]

Making no real eye contact as it was on the phone, looking at recent messages, Shiori absentmindedly replied, "Believe me, we're not alike. I, for one, have better reasons for keeping things in the dark. He just does it because it makes everything 'fun'. Or at least, that what I think."

Celty listened to Shiori and waved a hand in front of it. The brunette closed its phone and faced Celty, giving her a puzzled look. Celty, however, typed on her PDA and showed it Shiori. It nodded and waved goodbye to Celty, who started her motorbike and sped off into the distance. It looked in the direction where Celty pointed to for a while. Shrugging, it took one last look at its phone and walked in the opposite direction.

* * *

"Kishitani Shinra, are you home?", Shiori asked, knocking on the door. "It's me, Shiori."

It's been five minutes since Shiori stood here, waiting for Shinra to answer the door. It was sure it had gotten the right address; it recognized the place as soon as it saw the door, leading to the underground home. A few silent seconds passed before Shiori got impatient. "Come on out and open the damn door! I know you're in there!"

Finally, after knocking on the door for a while, Shinra answered the door. He raised the mug that was in his hand and grinned from ear to ear. "You're back Shiori? What do you need now? Oh, did you finally decide if you wanted me to see if you're a female or male?"

"Firstly, I'm here to talk about your father. Secondly, no, I don't want you touching me. At all.", Shiori said, pushing past him into the house. Shinra stepped back and closed the door.

"It seems you ignore the rule of house guests. The owner of the home is supposed to invite the guests in, but you just barged right in-"

"Ah, but you see, I don't care about that now. We need enough time to slowly talk about this guy."

Shinra just shrugged and offered it a seat on the couch. He sat down on the seat in front of her and asked, "So, what did you want to know? I probably have to hurry up since he'll be home soon."

Shiori raised an eyebrow, but didn't question the fact. "I wanted to know his relation with Saika."

"All I know is that he used Saika to take Celty's head twenty years ago. He's also part of Nebula, along with my stepmother.", he scratched the top of his head. "To be honest, you would have to ask my dad, but he would probably give you shady answers, so ask my stepmother."

Shiori leaned back in the sofa. "Okay, so do you know anything about Nebula?"

"It's an organization like Yagiri Pharmaceuticals.", Shinra said without rambling on. This made Shiori a little suspicious.

It narrowed its eyes at him and eventually muttered, "Ugh. From what I've heard, Yagiri Pharmaceuticals used to kidnap illegal immigrants and use them as lab rats.", it sighed as it got up and started walking. Shinra's eyes followed the brunette as it headed to the door. "Anyways, I'll see you later Shinra. And do you mind if I drop in like this again? I like to hop from place to place at times..."

"Oh yes, come again if you need to! I don't mind you coming here! Maybe I can experiment on you the next time we come back!", Shinra said, clasping his hands together. He went on rambling about other random stuff as Shiori waved to him and exited the underground home.

* * *

Shiori went to its last resort: go see Izaya. It was sure he wouldn't mind selling information to it about Saika or Nebula. The only real problem is that if Izaya knew its intentions, he would probably screw it up. But at the same time, he could be helping it. Really, Shiori couldn't tell which side he's going to take. Though, Shiori had no idea that he usually takes both sides.

By the time Shiori got to his apartment, it was late and had to get back soon. Namie answered the door and with a bored face, said, "Shiori, right? Come in."

It shrugged and came in to see Izaya on the computer, typing away. Shiori wondered what he was possibly doing all the time on that computer. The info broker looked away for a moment to see the brunette, sitting at the couch, trying to see what he was doing.

Izaya turned off the monitor before Shiori got a real chance to see what he was doing. "Sorry, Shiori-san. Maybe next time!", he said, smirking from ear to ear. "How was your day today? Did you find everything you need?"

"I got some really shady answers, so I hope you can answer my questions in depth for me.", Shiori asked, ignoring Izaya's attempts at annoying it. "Who is Shinra's mother and father? And what exactly is Nebula?"

"Kishitani Emilia and Kishitani Shingen? And the company they work for, Nebula?", Izaya said, then he turned on the monitor and started typing away again.

"Kishitani Shingen...I've net him before. He's one of chief scientists for Nebula, but doesn't actually 'work' with them. He uses Nebula for his own research. I heard someone sold him Saika twenty years ago and managed to steal her head with it. If my prediction is correct, he sold it to Sonohara Anri's family and gave the head to Yagiri Pharmaceuticals."

"Kishitani Emilia is his wife and his assistant. She wasn't really part of his scheme, so don't worry too much about her.", Izaya said, now staring at the screen. "And Nebula is the corporation from America that experiment on supernatural creatures. Really, it's a bit like Yagiri Pharmaceuticals, but with more power."

Shiori shrugged and took in the information. It swore it heard Anri's family being a part of it, yet it remembered asking about Saika and she didn't know. It rubbed its forehead in frustration; things always seem to get complicated, it thought for a split second.

"Thanks for your help...", Shiori said grudgingly, almost imitating Namie. It handed Izaya the cash at it commented, "You didn't mind helping much, did you? Kukuku...are you working behind the scenes?"

"Oh, Shiori, always suspecting innocent me!", Izaya cried, though it sounded more like a mocking cry. "Though, you could say I'm working behind the scenes...I really don't have much of an influence on my wonderful city at the moment. I will soon, though."

"Iza-kun...", it started, watching the man get up from his computer chair and look out the window. "...your mind is always ticking. One day, I want to see what's in that head of yours."

**A/N: I'M SO SORRY FOR UPDATING SO LATE!**

**Forgive me? *puppy eyes***

**Anyways, just to give you readers a heads up, I'll be really busy in June (exams, duh) and August (vacation), so I might not be able to update. **

**What do you think of Shiori and Inouye? I would love to hear your opinions about them (good or bad), either via review or PM. Oh, and keep reading/following/favoriting/reviewing! It means so much to me~!**


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